[Milsurplus] BC-223-A mil transmitter acquisition...

[Peter Buehner]

Hello Everyone. 

I recently joined this group and I thought I would introduce myself by way of telling you a little about my latest military surplus acquisition.

I've been a ham radio operator for about 26 years now, and have been tinkering with electronics since I was a kid.

Well, thanks to eBay I finally acquired a BC-223-A transmitter - my "second" one.

I owned my first unit when I was a teenager in the early sixties.  When I was a sophomore in high school (in 1964) I bought a nearly identical BC-223-A from our ham radio club in high school - for only five dollars!  I didn't know too much about electronics at that time, so little by little I gutted the radio to see how it was built - eventually throwing everything out.  Over the years, I could kick myself every time I thought of what I did.  Those radios gradually became more difficult to locate, becoming more expensive - and scarce - until the Internet arrived (thanks eBay!).   Heathkit sold many on the surplus market for a time following WW2, but I didn't know that at the time.  Finally, the prices reached the levels that they are today.  I am still pleased that I was finally able to acquire another one.

This radio is even in better shape than the one I owned back in 1964.  All the parts look like they're in original factory condition. No tampering/modification is evident anywhere.  Nothing is missing on the rig except for the crystals (fortunately, there is a manual Master Oscillator facility on the transmitter).  The rig looks like it's simply been "stored" and untouched for the last 50 years.  Unfortunately, the serial number of the transmitter is #355 and the serial number TU-18-A tuning unit's is #169.  Ideally, they should both match.  However, with a little experimentation (and the fortuitous existence of the original factory calibration chart which is stored in the right hand side metal pocket) I should be able to find a suitable operating frequency on 80 meters.

I bought a reprint of the original Training Manual from WA5CAB and also acquired several spare NOS tubes (VT-62 and VT-63) on ebay for it recently.  I checked the filament circuitry on the rig and it seems to demonstrate that all is well.

I am very near to applying the "serious" voltage to the tubes via the dynamotor from another recent ebay acquiring.  I'm just waiting for the right moment to do that.  I will be doing a few more tests and mulling over a few more concerns before I apply power to all the circuits simultaneously.  ...But, even if I doesn't fire it up, I still plan to (at least) restore it to its original look, having searched out crinkle paint and the original pan-head screws.  It's going to be a project that will give me many months of satisfaction.

I was wondering who else on this list owns this rig?    I would like to hear from others that are currently restoring or have restored one of these rigs back to their original operating condition.